One of the biggest things they found was that success doesn't come with an instruction manual. Instead, there's a lot of trying, failing, and constantly struggling: "What we found in our conversations with these superachievers was that success did not come to them in the thunderclaps of their Eureka! moments," they write. "Talent was just the beginning ... their progress toward their goals was furthered by their fierce dedication to the day-to-day struggle for achievement."

Thanks to Sweeney and Gosfield for permission to publish some of the best advice from the talented people they interviewed for their book.